Shooting Star Rhapsody
by Abarero
Summary: Whether on the battlefield of the stars or years after the war is over, these two boys found something in each other that was worth holding onto. A Heero x Duo collection.
1. 93: Not Funny

**Author's Notes:** Hello, this will be my collection of Heero x Duo drabbles and ficlets I write for the livejournal community beat(underscore)of(underscore)destiny.

Just as a note, Relena does make positive-appearances in these stories because while I love 1x2, I also love her as a character.

A major thanks to my friend and Gundam-series beta-reader, Freya-sama2x1x2

* * *

**Title:** Caught in the Act  
**Theme:** #93- Not Funny  
**Rating:** PG  
**Genre:** Humor  
**Pairing:** Duo/Heero  
**Summary:** "Someday, when we're old and wrinkled and telling our grandkids about the war- we will look back at this day and laugh."

* * *

"Duo, stop laughing. This isn't funny." 

The braided young man snorted, trying to compose himself once again. Heero was right, being in a hostage situation wasn't funny and he really shouldn't be laughing- but he couldn't help himself.

"I can see the headlines now: Miss Peacecraft's personal bodyguard and his partner being held hostage after being caught with their guard down."

"My guard wasn't down," Heero muttered, eyeing the ropes that held them and wondering how hard it would be to try and break through them.

"No, but your pants were…" Duo countered, the comment sending him into another fit of laughter.

"Duo," He warned, patience wearing thin, "It really isn't funny."

"Come on Heero, loosen up. Someday, when we're old and wrinkled and telling our grandkids about the war- we will look back at this day and laugh."

Heero frowned, "Duo. We're both guys. We can't have children, let alone grandchildren."

Duo shrugged, "We can adopt. Or corrupt Relena's kids. Or both."

"I think you've laughed enough today for many years to come."

The former Deathscythe pilot grinned as another devilish idea came to mind.

"I wonder what the other guys will say when they found out how we got caught…"

Wishing his arms were free so he could rub his temples, Heero sighed.

"I really don't want to know."

Clearing his throat, Duo rattled off the comments he supposed the other three would have.

"If you get out of this, you could make a circus act out of it."

Switching voices, Duo mumbled, "I do not know you two, I have never known you two. And I really didn't need to know about your sex life."

And finally, finishing it off.

"I hope you two were using protection."

"Duo. Shut up," The former Wing Zero pilot said, trying his best to use sheer strength to snap the ropes.

About to launch into another set of rambles about how utterly humorous their predicament was, Duo finally shut up at the sounds of gunshots from out in the hallway.

"Ah looks like the guys are here."

Heero braced himself for the joking, the mockery and the strange questions he was sure to receive about how he managed to get captured so easily.

"All right boys, I'm running late for a meeting- so hurry up."

The two glanced up at the voice, both slightly shocked as to who it was.

Sure enough, there stood Relena in a very nice, formal dress with a smoking revolver in her hand. Tossing a pocket knife in Heero's direction, the young woman shook her head.

"You said Duo Maxwell would be the downfall of you, but now I'm apt to believe it," She said with a laugh.

Heero scowled, quickly using the knife to cut the ropes free. Standing, he looked to Relena.

"If you don't mind, I'm going home to bed."

"He had a long night last night…" Duo piped up with a laugh.

"Duo," He tossed the pocket knife right at the brown-haired man's head, "It's _not_ funny."

* * *


	2. 33: First Impression

**Title:** Hooked

**Theme + Number:** #33 / First Impression

**Genre:** Introspective/General

**Character/Pairing:** Duo/Heero

**Word Count:** 369

**Rating:** PG

**Summary:** Heero leaves a memorable first impression.

**Notes:** Takes place during episode 8.

* * *

"_So his name is Heero…_" 

I've seen some crazy people in my life, but this guy sure takes the cake. Hell, he takes the cake, the ice cream and the whole dang birthday party.

Never in my life have I found myself more interested in another person than in this kid. Or, as I now knew his name, should I say – Heero.

In the brief time I've known him; he's jumped out of a building without a parachute and reset his own broken leg. Not that I'm saying either action set well with me (they both were something I could have done without in my life) but it makes me wonder just what makes this guy tick.

At the current moment- he's racing against the clock to stop the detonation device on the base. A ten percent chance of success, which means a ninety percent chance of failure. Everyone else is counting on him, so who am I to be the odd man out?

"_It's all up to you now. Go for it, Heero._"

And just like every crazy stunt up until this point, sure enough- he pulls through. With 1:45 to spare, nonetheless. Always being Mr. Flashy, as usual- aren'tcha Heero?

"_I gotta say, you're quite the guy- Heero. Way to go._"

As the carriers take off, I look back- watching from the corner of my eye as I notice him climbing back up beside his Gundam. Sure, I can't tell much from this distance- but of all the reactions to having just saved the entire base, the nutcase seems to be pissed off about something.

I shrug it off, just gonna chalk it up to the way he ticks (Which, I still haven't quite figured out yet, mind you).

Finally, I see him board his carrier and take off, slowly lining up to follow mine. Smirking to myself, I lean back in the seat and prepare myself for the trip. Because of all the first impressions people have left on me throughout my fifteen years of life, Heero's is the only one that has left me desperately wanting to know more. I'm hooked, and there's nothing I can do about it but hang on for the ride.

* * *


	3. 19: The War Within

**Title:** Inner Battles  
**Theme + Number:** #19/ The War Within  
**Genre:** Drama/Introspective  
**Warnings:** None  
**Character/Pairing:** Duo/Heero  
**Word Count:** 667  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Summary:** After the war is over, there's another war to be fought...

* * *

He was just a boy, a child really, who was haunted by the ghosts of his fifteen years of life. In slumber, those ghosts would haunt him. Digging through his memories, taunting him with the innocent deaths he'd caused. Even after the war itself was over, his war inside was only beginning. 

It had begun a few months after the end of the war. Simple dreams, memories really, that would turn into horrendous nightmares. He'd wake up in cold sweats, sometimes crying out and tears welling in his eyes.

For a heart ruled by such strong emotions to be plagued by such tragedy- it was really a cruel twist of fate. And when the boy named Heero Yuy found a reason to live to the future- the people he wanted to live for- these tragedies seemed to lessen.

But now, they were back to haunt him. Vivid memories of bloodstained hands and the broken feeling killing others left him with. On the outside, he seemed fine- not the type to let his past ruin his future. It was at nighttime though, that he lost control and the darker dreams began to win.

At first, he thought it would pass. Studies everywhere spoke of how soldiers would often experience post-war trauma and have hallucinations and dreams that would come with it. Heero hoped that was his case, but after months of restless nights, he sought out an unlikely ally in name.

Now at night when the nightmares would overtake him, Death would watch him from the doorway with sympathy brimming in his eyes.

Heero had the name of a dead man, and it was in a man who once called himself death that he found some relief from his troubles.

But even Death could not wake him from his slumber. It was a war he had to fight alone, a war within himself. So tragic was this state of being, that even Death wept for him- his unseen tears being shed for the sake of the man trapped in his own war.

Nights passed, and the war only grew worse. Sometimes he'd toss and turn until the blankets strangled the air from his throat.

Quietly, Death would reach out and save him. It was not his time to die.

Perhaps, had Death been the cynical type, he would have taken the boy's life long ago. There was once he almost had, but that gunshot was not meant to kill. Now, he had hope that the pains would be overcome and that the boy could live again. This boy- was meant to live.

Each night, the shell of indifference would crack and break a little more. Emotions of sorrow and regret allowing themselves to surface as he slept.

And all the time, Death held his hand; comforting him and trying to soothe away the pain. These silent nights, left him a lot of time to think, as he stayed awake beside Heero. He'd once called himself the God of Death, but that seemed almost like a sick joke now. Like his companion, he too was fighting a war within. As Heero struggled in his sleep to find peace, a boy named Duo Maxwell struggled on the outside for that same peace.

Together, they made their amends with the past. Repentance for the innocent lives they took, vows to never let such a terrible war happen again, and hope that no other children would have to befall the same fate as the five boys called Gundam Pilots did.

One night the dreams ceased and Death left in name, but not in presence. Heero Yuy, the dead man, the killer, the failure, was dead. And the God of Death himself, died right beside him.

As the morning light came shining through the window, two new lives were born into the world. A boy by the name of Heero Yuy and his companion, Duo Maxwell. They were children of the future- a future they were going to live out to the fullest.

* * *


	4. 86: The Need for Speed

**Title:** Race for the Miracle  
**Theme + Number:** #86 / The Need for Speed  
**Genre:** Drama/General  
**Warnings:** None  
**Character/Pairing:** Duo/Heero, Relena/Wufei  
**Word Count:** 764  
**Rating** PG-13  
**Summary:** But there's not much time and so, I have to compensate for that with all the speed I can. Heero POV.

* * *

The night is dark, almost black, with just a few stars peering through the murky clouds above. I'm sure there's a moon out tonight, but its not letting itself be seen. A stealthy orb of white disguised amongst the gray curtain of the brewing storm clouds. 

Biting my lip, I clasp tighter to the handle bars and increase our speed once again. I can feel the arms around my waist tightening and thank the gods that he's awake enough to remember to hold on.

Turning another sharp corner, I continue along the mountainous roads- the single headlight the only thing guiding our way. But there's not much time and so, I have to compensate for that with all the speed I can.

* * *

It had started out a very calm evening. The cabin in the mountains that Relena had set us up with was luxurious, to be put mildly. I told her she really shouldn't have to go out of her way at a time like this, but she just smiled and said we deserved it. Who was I to argue with a beautiful, smiling woman like that? 

You see, we were about to witness a miracle. After all the lives we'd taken in the past, it was now our turn to be there for the birth of new life into the world. Relena and Wufei would be wonderful parents, Duo and I just knew it. So when her due date drew near, we'd opted to stay on Earth so we'd be close when Relena called us up.

Relena and I had been through a lot together, and we always were there to look out for each other. At first I'd even offered to stay at her estate with her and Wufei to help out with the preparations. She'd laughed at that, tapping me gently on the nose as she remarked that I acted as if I was the father.

Perhaps, in a sense, it was like I was. Duo and I, while we have been together for many years since the war ended, could only have a child if we adopted. The actual feelings and emotions tied to the act of giving birth- we could only experience those through our love and friendship with Relena and Wufei. While, by all means, it was their child- I think we were just as excited as they were when they got the good news that Relena was pregnant.

And from that day forward, we'd been waiting. Waiting for this very day and moment that was about to occur.

* * *

It was a little after two in the morning when we received the call. Wufei's voice ground out a simple, "Get your asses over here," before hanging up and rushing out the door with Relena. I shook my head as I thought back to it, wondering to myself just how much of a nervous wreck the former Gundam pilot had to be. 

Duo had rented a motorcycle for us to use while we stayed in the mountains, saying that it's sleek build and speed would be the best for our purposes. Little did he know that he'd be too tired to even think about driving it this late at night.

So there I was, driving the small motorcycle around the twists and turns of the mountain roads towards the nearby hospital. I'd managed to stir Duo awake enough to get him dressed, but he was still rather groggy as he slumped against my back.

Preparing to take another turn, I yelled back to him.

"You'd better still be holding on."

I felt a squeeze around my middle and his eyes squinted open.

"Are you trying to kill me with your reckless driving, Heero?"

Taking the turn sharper than I should have, I smirked as he clung closer to me.

"Maybe I am. But we need to hurry."

He yawned and peeked over my shoulder, frowning when he saw the speedometer climbing.

"Once again, Heero Yuy is playing daredevil and trying to drag me along for the ride. Remind me again while I put up with this?"

I revved the engine, pushing the speed higher.

"I think it was something like because you love me?"

He leaned up and pressed a kiss to my cheek.

"Ah yes. That."

The lights of the city appeared on the horizon up ahead and my eyes searched for the hospital amongst the few lit signs.

"You think we'll make it in time?" Duo asked.

Speeding up once more as I set sight on the building, I nodded.

"Yah. I know we will."

* * *


	5. 34: Troubled Thoughts

**Title:** Moving Forward  
**Theme + Number:** #34/ Troubled thoughts

**Genre:** Drama/Introspective/Romance  
**Warnings:** Spoilers for EW and Duo's past  
**Character/Pairing:** Duo/Heero  
**Word Count:** 642  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary:** We both have our regrets. People we wish we could have saved, mistakes we wish we hadn't made. But dwelling on these things doesn't make it any better. We have to keep moving forward.

-----------------------------------

The rain was falling steadily by the time he got home, the warm summer showers soaking through his clothes and giving him a slight chill. But at the moment, this was the least of Heero Yuy's concerns.

There were no lights on in the apartment, and given the weather- Heero knew that Duo couldn't be out at the junk yards working overtime. No, something wasn't right and that thought alone caused him to climb the stairs quicker than usual.

"Duo?" He called softly through the door, waiting for an answer and not getting one.

Fumbling in his damp pocket for the keys, he finally found them and jammed it into the lock. Pushing the door open, he noticed a familiar lump on the sofa.

"Duo?"

"I'm...here."

Slowly edging his way to the blanket-clad figure on the couch, Heero sat down beside him.

"Why are all the lights off?"

"Power's out?" He offered lamely.

Heero leveled him with a serious glare, "Duo, we've talked about this. You don't have to hide your feelings from me."

Slouching over onto Heero, Duo sighed.

"Something happened downtown today..."

Heero remained silent, reaching over and took Duo's hand.

"There was a fire at the local church," He paused, "A couple of orphans there didn't- didn't make it out in time."

Thinking back to what Duo had told him about his past, Heero understood right away what the problem was. It hit too close to home, too similar to the events in which Duo had lost the people he considered his only family.

Pulling his companion into an embrace, Heero absently stroked his hair.

"You couldn't have saved them, Duo."

"I know. But...I wish I could have."

"I killed a young girl by accident once. Her and her small dog."

Duo snapped his head up at the sudden admission, his eyes focusing on Heero's somber expression. Quietly, Heero explained.

"The explosives were too powerful, and so my target fell onto the building she lived in. I'd met her in the park earlier that day, playing with her puppy," He closed his eyes in thought, but continued to speak, "It was a fatal mistake; something I've wanted to erase from my memory but can't."

Biting his lip, Duo spoke up, "Why haven't you told me this before, Heero?"

"Because it's not something I'm proud of," He replied honestly.

"Then why now?"

"You needed to hear it."

The two fell silent, the steady rain outside being the only noise as Duo wrapped his arms around Heero.

"Thank you."

"We both have our regrets, Duo. People we wish we could have saved, mistakes we wish we hadn't made. But dwelling on these things doesn't make it any better. We have to keep moving forward."

Duo smirked, leaning back as he tapped Heero on the nose.

"You've been around Relena too much. You're starting to talk like her."

A soft smile crept onto Heero's face, "She said something else about it too."

"What's that?"

"That the best way to move on is with the help of someone who loves you."

Laughing lightly, Duo shook his head, "Man, that girl sure knows us better than anyone else. Maybe we should hire her out as a post-war therapist."

Heero pulled back looking down at his still-damp clothing.

"I have a feeling already that she'll have something to say if I come in tomorrow with a cold because I was sitting around in a wet shirt all night."

"I bet she will."

Standing up, Heero paused a moment.

"So, are you okay now?"

Duo nodded with a genuine smile, "Yep, couldn't be better. Love heals and all that sappy shit."

Heero leaned down for a quick kiss then turned towards the bedroom.

"I'm going to go change, why don't you try and turn the lights on."

Standing with a mock salute, Duo smirked.

"Mission accepted."

----------------------------------------------------


	6. 16: House

**Title:** A Place to Call Home  
**Theme + Number:** 16. House  
**Genre:** Romance/General  
**Warnings:** None  
**Character/Pairing:** Duo/Heero  
**Word Count:** 778  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **Everyone needs a place to come home to.

---------------------------------------------------

Heero stifled a yawn as he opened the door to their apartment. It had been a long night, making sure Relena safely made it home after her peace negotiations on L4 had taken a bit longer than expected when their intended re-entry to the atmosphere point had to be changed. It turned out that their original point also happened to be the same place in which a group of torrential thunderstorms had taken up residency.

Inwardly, Heero decided to equip his laptop with an up-to-the-minute weather service for certain areas of the world for just such occasions as this one.

Once Relena was safely back at home, her personal bodyguard then had to travel a little more before his night was over. Luckily, Heero thought to himself, Duo was already staying at their earth-apartment so he wouldn't have to fly all the way to the colonies before finding a warm bed waiting for him.

The two both loved their jobs and didn't want to give them up. But with Duo's business being out in the colonies and Heero's often taking him to earth or to other colonies for Relena's visits to various heads of state it didn't give them a middle point to call home.

At first they tried just staying together on vacation times, but they quickly realized that it wasn't going to work out. Heero found he just couldn't sleep right without Duo there with him, and Duo kept arranging various vacations on Earth just to keep himself closer to Heero.

In the end, they made their compromise: an apartment on both Earth and the colonies. Hilde shared the two-bedroom apartment on L2 with them and the one on Earth wasn't that far from the Peacecraft home. It made things much easier and left them with the mere task of figuring out which one would be the most convenient to stay at each night.

If Heero had a trip with Relena that would take them to the colonies overnight, he'd go home to L2 at the end of the day. But if the trip would end back on Earth, Duo would take a shuttle down after his day of work and wait for Heero there.

As such, this very night- Heero knew Duo would be waiting at their apartment on Earth for him to come home.

Pushing the front door open, he noticed that the lights had already been turned off and glanced at a nearby clock.

"0100 hours. He's probably already gone to bed," The young man murmured to himself as he shrugged off his coat by the door.

"That you, Heero?" A groggy voice called from the bedroom.

Heero shook his head as he unloaded some of his weapons into a drawer.

"Some soldier you are. What if it wasn't me?"

"Then I'd pick up the gun under the mattress with my toes and hold you at gunpoint."

Walking down the hallway, Heero leaned against the doorframe to the bedroom. A brown-haired figure sprawled out on the bed.

"You didn't have to wait up."

Rolling onto his side with a yawn, Duo sleepily replied, "Couldn't fall asleep without knowing you were home safe. It was storming like hell here a few hours ago."

"That's why we were delayed coming back," Heero said, laying down on the bed next to Duo.

"Long day at work?"

Duo scooted over on the bed and Heero gently wrapped his arms around his waist as he laid down behind him.

"Something like that. You?"

Yawning again, the long-haired man shrugged, "We got a huge truckload we had to go through. I'm completely exhausted."

"All the more reason you shouldn't have waited up."

"Oh be quiet. You're just as bad when I'm away."

Heero sighed when he knew he realized he couldn't argue with that. Propping himself up on his elbow, he leaned over and gave Duo a quick kiss.

"Goodnight, Duo."

Yawn swallowing up the first of his words, Duo replied, "… 'Night Heero."

The two lay there for a few moments, their breaths evening out and the room falling quiet. Once he was sure Duo was already asleep, Heero slowly pulled away and went to change out of his work clothes into a baggy shirt and boxers.

Sliding back under the covers, he wasn't surprised at all when Duo rolled over and rested his head on his chest.

"…'love ya, Heero," He mumbled.

Heero smiled, gently pushing the hair out of Duo's face and leaving a chaste kiss on his forehead.

"Love you too, Duo."

And now, with things seemingly right inside their little world; the two fell into a peaceful slumber content to be home at last.

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	7. 24: Hair

**Title:** A Single Strand of Hair  
**Theme + Number:** #24/ Hair

**Genre:** Drama/Romance/General  
**Warnings:** Spoilers for the "Episode Zero" manga with all the flashbacks to the G-boys' childhoods.  
**Character/Pairing:** Duo/Heero  
**Word Count:** 568  
**Rating:** PG  
**Summary: **It's amazing how much importance a person's hair can have.

-------------------------------------

There was something unique about each one of them.

Duo's was worn in a long braid, flowing down his back like a rope and flopping about behind him as he ran. It was a symbol of his memories, of the friends and family he'd lost years ago.

Wufei's was jet-black. Worn now tightly pulled back, as if abiding by a tradition of a monk. But there were days in his past when his hair and heart were free. Days he dedicates to his beloved Nataku.

Quatre's blonde locks identified him immediately as part of the Winner family. His hair was like his mother's, a mother he'd never met because she died giving birth to him.

Trowa's hair hung like a vertical mask over his face. Hiding it from the past he never knew. Yet, without realizing it, his hair had the identical shade of brown that a girl who worked at the local Circus had.

Heero's hair was in all ways- normal. A messy mop of dark brown that never seemed to fall the same direction twice. It had no connection to his past. And it didn't explain anything about lost family or lost loves. It was one thing he had no sentimentality attached to. Unlike the others, his hair was just that- hair- and nothing more.

But that changed with time. The words of his mentor always present in his mind, helped lead him down the paths that would shape his future.

"Do as your heart tells you to," Odin Lowe's words echo in his mind even to this day.

And those words took him down a path that no one could have ever imagined. Perhaps it was fate, perhaps it was his heart's desire- but whatever it was, those words drove boy who would one day take the name Heero Yuy onward.

First, he became a Gundam pilot. A chance meeting with a scientist and the right feeling in his heart and Heero was on his way.

It was during his missions as a pilot that he encountered the four other boys. Each of them had strands of hair that told a story; and with them- he'd soon find a reason to call his own appearance something extraordinary.

Together, the five boys fought a war. Each bringing with them, their stories of their pasts and their hopes for the future. Along with a brave young woman named Relena, they were able to usher in an era of peace.

But Heero still found nothing particularly notable about his looks. That is, until he found out that someone else found them noteworthy.

Duo had somehow wormed his way into part of Heero's everyday life. Even if the braided young man wasn't there physically, Heero found himself thinking about him instead. It was only a matter of time before the two found what they'd always been looking for in each other.

And finally, Heero found that his looks had meaning. Duo found them attractive and that was all the reason Heero ever needed. Whatever it was about the unruly dark brown strands that Duo found appealing, Heero wasn't quite sure. But Duo loved him, loved everything about him- and that made all the difference.

Now each morning, Heero found himself spending just a little more time than usual trying to get the hairs to fall into place; even if Duo would only come along and mess it up later.

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End file.
